Given Richard's current level of power, eliminating Gilgamesh, Druig, and Thena would require minimal effort. A single thought could end their existence instantly, reducing ancient beings to cosmic dust within seconds.
However, immediate execution wasn't Richard's goal. If he simply killed them outright, they would experience nothing beyond the moment of their death—a quick, relatively painless end to millennia of existence.
But dying at the hands of beloved companions? That carried an entirely different psychological weight. The emotional devastation of being betrayed and murdered by those they trusted most would inflict a deeper wound than any physical attack could achieve.
After sending Thena flying with his devastating punch, Gilgamesh immediately sprinted toward her tumbling form. His strategy was sound: render her unconscious before she could recover her bearings and resume the attack. Only by incapacitating Thena quickly could he minimize the psychological damage of their forced conflict.
Unfortunately for Gilgamesh, his tactical assessment overlooked a critical factor.
As the saying goes, hope is beautiful, but reality is often cruel.
If this had been a simple one-on-one confrontation, Gilgamesh might have succeeded in subduing Thena before she could mount an effective defense. His superior raw strength would have given him a decisive advantage in close-quarters combat.
But this wasn't a fair fight. Druig remained active and dangerous.
While Gilgamesh and Thena had been locked in their deadly dance, Druig had continued his telepathic assault with single-minded determination. Using the distraction provided by Thena's attack, he finally succeeded in penetrating Gilgamesh's mental defenses.
Just as Gilgamesh was about to reach Thena's prone form, his legs locked in place. His entire body went rigid, every muscle frozen as Druig's chaotic mental control seized command of his nervous system.
"Fighting two opponents simultaneously is still quite challenging," Richard observed from his aerial vantage point, watching with detached amusement as Gilgamesh stood motionless like a statue.
While Richard possessed the capability to break Druig's telepathic hold and free Gilgamesh, he had no intention of intervening. The specific outcome of this confrontation was irrelevant to his broader objectives. Whether Druig used his puppet Thena to execute Gilgamesh, or whether Gilgamesh somehow broke free and killed Druig, the result would be equally entertaining.
All that mattered was the spectacle itself.
Having successfully paralyzed his target, Druig approached the frozen Gilgamesh with the curiosity of a predator examining helpless prey. He circled the immobilized warrior several times, studying him from multiple angles as if trying to understand this strange, motionless creature.
After completing his examination, Druig did something that was both predictable and deeply satisfying: he began systematically beating Gilgamesh with his bare hands.
Despite his psychological breakdown, Druig clearly retained enough memory to hold grudges. The two devastating punches Gilgamesh had delivered earlier—blows that had nearly ended Druig's existence—demanded retribution.
For several minutes, Druig pummeled the helpless Gilgamesh with unrestrained fury. His fists weren't particularly powerful compared to enhanced beings, but the psychological satisfaction of revenge seemed to drive him to continue long past the point of practicality.
Eventually, even Druig's primitive mind recognized that simple violence wasn't sufficient. He turned his attention to Thena, who had recovered from Gilgamesh's knockout blow and was standing nearby in vacant readiness.
Under Druig's telepathic command, Thena activated her energy materialization abilities. Cosmic power flowed through her hands, coalescing into the form of a massive two-handed battle axe. The weapon's golden surface gleamed with lethal purpose as she began walking toward the paralyzed Gilgamesh with mechanical precision.
Watching this development unfold, Richard decided the entertainment had reached its natural conclusion. While observing the Eternals destroy each other had been amusing, he wasn't about to let their valuable supernatural abilities go to waste.
Without hesitation, Richard teleported from his position miles above the battlefield to ground level, materializing directly between Druig and Thena.
He immediately channeled magical energy through his own version of energy materialization—an ability he'd acquired from previous encounters with Eternals. A golden katana formed in his right hand, its length matching Masamune's proportions perfectly.
Before either Eternal could react to his sudden appearance, Richard launched his signature technique.
Octaslash.
Eight lightning-fast strikes carved through the air in a complex pattern, each blade movement following the next with surgical precision. The energy-forged katana passed through Thena's body eight times in the span of a single heartbeat, sectioning her into perfectly divided pieces.
While the materialized weapon lacked the reality-cutting properties of his actual Masamune, the technique remained devastatingly effective against opponents of Thena's caliber.
The moment Thena's bisected form hit the ground, Richard flash-stepped to Druig's position and repeated the attack. The broken Eternal had no opportunity to defend himself or attempt escape. Like his companion, Druig was reduced to scattered fragments by the overwhelming speed and precision of Octaslash.
With Druig's death, his telepathic control over Gilgamesh immediately dissolved. The warrior's consciousness returned in a rush of sensory input and emotional shock.
The first thing Gilgamesh saw upon regaining awareness was the dismembered remains of both Thena and Druig scattered across the rocky ground. The sight triggered an immediate explosion of grief and rage that overwhelmed his normally stoic demeanor.
While Gilgamesh didn't recognize Richard specifically, the circumstances made the killer's identity obvious. Without hesitation, he channeled cosmic energy into his signature gauntlets and launched himself at the mysterious figure who had murdered his beloved and his former teammate.
Gilgamesh's assault was impressively swift by normal standards, his enhanced physiology allowing him to cover ground with supernatural speed.
Compared to Richard's capabilities, however, Gilgamesh might as well have been moving through thick molasses.
Richard briefly considered whether to end the confrontation immediately or allow it to continue for his own amusement. After a moment's reflection, he decided that Gilgamesh deserved to suffer a bit longer—a final torment before joining his companions in death.
As Gilgamesh's fist approached his position, Richard activated his super-speed and effortlessly sidestepped the attack. The frustrated warrior immediately pivoted and launched another strike, then another, each attempt becoming more desperate as his target remained perpetually just out of reach.
For nearly a full minute, Gilgamesh charged at Richard like an enraged bull, pouring every ounce of his strength and speed into futile attacks that never connected with their target. Each failed assault only increased his anguish and desperation.
Eventually, Richard grew bored with the one-sided game. He raised the materialized golden katana and assumed a combat stance.
Octaslash.
The final execution was swift and merciful compared to Gilgamesh's emotional torment. Eight precise cuts ended the ancient warrior's existence as cleanly as cutting through soft butter, his enhanced durability providing no meaningful protection against Richard's overwhelming skill.
With all three Eternals properly deceased, Richard dismissed the energy-forged weapon and activated an ability he hadn't used in quite some time.
Plunder.
The familiar rush of stolen power flooded through Richard's system as the Eternals' abilities integrated with his existing capabilities.
[New Abilities Acquired: Mind Control, Energy Materialization, Super Strength, Super Endurance, Immortality, Cosmic Energy Manipulation]
[Duplicate Ability Types Detected - Initiating Fusion Process]
[Mind Control, Energy Materialization, Super Strength, Super Endurance, Immortality, and Cosmic Energy Manipulation Enhanced]
The information panel materialized in Richard's visual field, displaying the technical details of his newly acquired enhancements. Having previously encountered and absorbed Eternal abilities in other realities, he was thoroughly familiar with their capabilities and potential applications.
After briefly reviewing the power integration data, Richard dismissed the interface and activated his teleportation ability. Rather than traveling to Mumbai to observe the conflict between Sersi, Sprite, and Kingo, he decided to redirect his attention to North America.
The commercial flight carrying Sersi and Sprite wouldn't reach India for another six or seven hours, meaning their confrontation with Kingo was still several hours away. This delay provided Richard with an opportunity to locate and eliminate the two remaining Eternals he found most objectionable: Ajak and Phastos.
While he didn't possess specific intelligence regarding their current locations, finding them wouldn't prove particularly challenging. At worst, he would need to expand his telepathic awareness to encompass the entire North American continent—a task well within his enhanced capabilities.
As long as Ajak and Phastos remained somewhere within the United States, their discovery was simply a matter of time and systematic scanning